As is well known, a microscope is an optical instrument used to view, examine and study very small objects. There are many different types of microscopes, each best suited to particular applications. These include compound microscopes, stereomicroscopes, confocal microscopes, inverted microscopes, and laser microscopes, to name but a few.
The present invention relates generally to compound microscopes and to those microscopes that are equipped with a sample stage capable of being controlled by a stage drive mechanism.
Microscopes have long used stages for the positioning of samples within the optical path. An object can be manipulated by moving the stage forwards and backwards, left and right, and up and down. A common convention for naming the left-right, front-back, and up-down axes is x, y, and z, respectively.
Often, the focusing mechanism functions by adjusting the stage height. By changing the sample height, the microscopist can observe different depths within the z-axis of the sample.
In order to adjust the x or the y position, the user must have available a stage control mechanism capable of performing this movement. Typically, both x and y adjustment are performed by a single mechanism. Additionally, this mechanism is located under and to one side of the stage.
Due to the variety of microscopists using these instruments, both left & right-handed stages are required. The location of the stage control mechanism is on the side of the stage matching the user's predominant hand of use. Further complicating the problem, a laboratory may have a left-handed and a right-handed user sharing a single microscope.
Having to match the stage configuration to the microscopist's predominate hand creates difficulty for the manufacture of product. Each microscope must be either a left-handed or a right-handed microscope. After the assembly is complete, changing the configuration requires significant disassembly and reassembly time, as well as requiring a complete additional stage mechanism. This problem also requires microscope manufacturers to maintain inventories of both left-handed and right-handed stage assemblies.
Further, at times it would be convenient for a microscopist to manipulate the microscope stage without the restrictions imposed by a stage control mechanism. For example, approximately 90% of pathologists use a “hand-drive” technique, i.e., rapid movement of the specimen by directly moving the slide mount without the use of the stage drive mechanism. Current systems are difficult for an operator to push or pull on the stage/slide mount, without potentially causing damage to the drive mechanisms. Furthermore, most pathologists would prefer to remove the stage drive mechanism completely. Thus, there has been a long-felt need for an interchangeable or easily removable microscope stage drive assembly.